Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura, left, and Defense Agency Director-General Yoshinori Ono addresses the media on Saturday in Washington.

Base-sharing and relocation of U.S forces are key issues in the talks.

WASHINGTON-High-ranking Japanese and U.S. officials agreed Saturday to hold ``intensive talks'' to map out the roles of the two nations in military cooperation.

They also agreed to discuss, in the context of Washington's global military realignment, the relocation of some U.S. forces stationed in Japan.

Negotiators at the ``two-plus-two'' meeting pledged to reach final agreement in several months.

Washington is keen for U.S. forces to jointly use Self-Defense Forces bases in Japan.

Tokyo is agreeable to this because it would streamline U.S. military bases in Japan.

The government dispatched Foreign Minister Nobutaka Machimura and Defense Agency Director-General Yoshinori Ono to the meeting. The Bush administration was represented by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

The four held a news conference to present a joint statement.

Both sides reconfirmed ``common strategic objectives'' that called for peaceful resolution to such issues as North Korea's nuclear standoff, tensions on the Taiwan Strait and stability in Asia and the Pacific.

They also said they wanted to consolidate the Japan-U.S. partnership to promote global stability.

The two governments will hold further talks on the division of roles and responsibilities of the SDF and U.S. forces in Japan.

During Saturday's talks, participants agreed that future negotiations should be intensive.

Although the U.S. side wanted to reach a conclusion within three months, Tokyo officials said they needed time to win understanding of local residents in areas hosting military bases that would be affected by the U.S. military transformation. The talks will wind up later this year, said a source who attended the meeting.

The joint statement acknowledged the ``need to continue examining the roles, missions, and capabilities of the SDF and the U.S. Armed Forces.'' It also emphasized the importance of enhancing interoperability between Japanese and U.S. forces.

It was clear that the two sides plan to jointly use bases and conduct military exercises together as well as share information on a proposed missile defense system and other issues.

Ono told the news conference: ``We must consider the joint use of bases. I believe this would open the door to both maintaining a deterrence force (of the U.S. military) and reducing the burden (on local residents near areas hosting bases in Japan).''

Tokyo and Washington have already discussed the possibility of the SDF and U.S. military sharing bases, including relocating the Air SDF command now based in Tokyo's Fuchu area to the U.S. Air Force's Yokota Air Base.

Other plans considered include integrating the ASDF Naha base into the Kadena Air Base in Okinawa.(IHT/Asahi: February 21,2005)